Huna Day 2019-March 9, 2019

Is there a mobile app this year?

 

No. Just the site.

 

Well that blows...

 

Just use the almighty spreadsheet

 

Which was just updated with some huge additions:

3 Floyds Marshmallow Handjee!
3 Sons Lumberjack!
The Answer Jinxy Cat
Weldwerks Juicy Bits
Some good 450 North Sours, plus an IPA and a stout

 

Oh jesus I can finally try handjee

 

I'm ready for the roasting with the non beer question but are the any standouts with the food trucks there?

 

Only for VIPs, otherwise you’re screwed!

 

Not true.... your tickets comes with 4 tapas size portions from the myriad of food trucks that will be there. They also take case and card (at least lat yr). VIP or 12 bottle tickets get food in the vip tent.

 

I was joking.

 

Nothing stood out after drinking 3+ hours...but I was full and don't think I even used my last ticket.

 

The ramen truck last year was really darn good. True story

 

I was totally fucked up by the time I ate last year. Nothing stood out except for when the pizza truck scorched my mouth with an ultra fresh out of the oven slice.

 

You won’t be full but it gets the job done. Only two that I remember were the Philly Cheesesteak and I wanna say an Asian inspired chicken wing. Don’t remember the other two things I got but everything was good

 

Have been to a few beer festivals, but never any of this size, curious how many beers people expect to be able to try? Or maybe someone actually kept a count from the previous year.

Also, any idea of a good place to hangout Friday night that won't be crazy (or that will but is worth going to)? Wanted to go to Hidden Springs while I was in Tampa, but looking for suggestions.

 

You can try literally hundreds of beers if you just don’t stop drinking. I usually hit around 40. That being said in the past the “whales” will kick within the first hour so you’re looking at like 5 whales max if you don’t have friends helping.

 

This may answer your question: https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/tampa-bay-beer-week-2019.602166/

Please note the reference/link to the TBBW Events calendar.

 

Anyway to identify the "whales"? I have heard a couple mentioned, but I honestly have no idea. I've gone through the spreadsheet and started marking which beers are my priority, but if I knew which ones people considered whales it would likely change it up a bit. Thanks!

 

Don’t go into this seeking beers that others tell you to get. Trust me on this. You’ll have a way better time going for a wider array of things and not wasting time waiting in line all day. Go for the ones YOU want to try and sound appealing to YOU. If one of those that sounds appealing to you just happens to be a whale then by all means go for it. Just because it’s a whale or limited doesn’t mean it’s good and/or worth the price/wait. I promise you some of the under the radar tents will have stuff that surprises you and you’ll be glad you had the extra time to check them out.

 

I'm going to tell everyone a secret that not many people know. That stout you want to try from good brewery A likely tastes pretty damn close to that stout with the same variants from really good brewery B.

Really though if you haven't been whale hunting is dumb. Make a list of 2-3 beers that you definitely want to try and plan on hitting those right away then just walk up and down the line trying different beers.

I've been to Huna Day for 7 years now. Never once has the beer I had to have been the best beer I had that day. Almost every year it was something I did not have on my want to try list.

Also, if you're line waiting with friends. Send one buddy to other breweries with no wait and get a pour then bring them back. #Hunahack

 

Agree with everyone said about whale hunting. The taste doesn’t always match the hype.

But what I meant by whales and what you might be asking is “I don’t really follow what hype beers are throughout the year so can you help tell me which beer on my list is going to run out the fastest?”

My answer to that off the top of my head is Henna from More, BA cupcake from AC (might last a little longer if people got their fill from super rad the day before and the past few years but probably not), the BA stouts from 3 Floyds and probably 3 Sons stouts. I’m sure there are more, but that’s just top of my head.

 

The above is probably a good start, plenty of others, although AC will be crowded regardless. The hyped beers will have the longest lines immediately, so it's pretty easy to tell. But on your way to the first line, make sure to grab a pour from something with no line to try. Also, early in the day, if you get something that is mediocre or not great, don't slug it down, just dump it. The beer selection is so good that you don't need to finish the malty NE style IPA pours.

All the other comments are spot on.

 

Appreciate all of the solid suggestions!

I've always hated to dump beer but with sooo many options, absolutely going to do this if I find something I don't like.

 

Look at the untapped rating on the spreadsheet. My first stops will probably be three Floyds for handjee and more for henna double rainbow. 3 sons will have a massive line all day, same with angry chair

 

The funny thing is, "massive line" means less than 5 minutes in my experience. With the exception of my first pour last year (Assassin) I can't remember waiting longer than 5 minutes or so.

 

....just remember the best beers are the ones you didn't try. Fomo makes it all taste better lol

 

Have any beers been timed releases in previous years or is everything always ready to pour from the start?

 

There have been some in the past. 3 sons used to do this and weldworks 1 year. It has not been great in the past as lines start to build and get confusing.

Not sure how this will work this year since the news is that Ccb asked breweries to bring double the amount of a couple beers. But there are breweries like Wakefield that bring more types of beer than taps they have and so while it’s not a timed release, they just tap when something kicks, expect that the beers listed may not be available immediately at open.

 

Started doing that a couple of years ago. Beer not good? Dump it. Don't burn yourself out drinking a crappy beer.

Also, good rule to follow is don't go stout overload. After about 15 of them they all taste exactly the same and your palate it ruined by then. Additionally, you're so drunk you won't even remember it anyways.

Also agree on lines not being that long. Last year the longest I waited was 3 Sons but they were awesome and went down the line pouring for people while they waited.

 

Bummed tickets sold out. In the past anyone see people selling a ticket at the fest? Thinking about testing my luck

 

Anybody tell me where’s Toppling Goliat’s booth? Couldnt find it at A28

 

We need water

 

How’s it going? Comparison to previous years?

 

Finally got water

Short bathroom lines

Better than last year

 

Bathroom lines shorter. Hotter than last year. Had just a good of time.

2019 Huna and huna variants were the worst beers I had today.

 

Speaking of which, wish they would sell $100 tickets to enjoy the festival without the Huna bottles. Reason I haven’t went past couple years.

 

They know what they’re doing haha

 

The Cubano espresso xquics was phenomenal at least

 

I agree that beer was spectacular. Proofs Key Lime Evil Kiss was great as well and it won Best Beer. Well run this year for sure. Also smart idea to sell wide brim straw hats, the sun was in full force today.

 

Besides the heat today, the whole weekend was better for us. Smaller crowds everywhere we went. Huna day was great and an improvement over last year